Fatigue analysis of the surface EMG signal in isometric constant force contractions using the averaged instantaneous frequency

Abstract

The averaged instantaneous frequency (AIF) is proposed as an alternative method for the frequency analysis of surface electromyography (EMG) in the study of muscle fatigue during sustained, isometric muscle contractions. Results from performance analysis using experimental EMG signals demonstrate the low variability of the proposed frequency variable. Indeed, the AIF measure is shown to perform significantly better than the widely used mean and median frequency variables, in terms of robustness to the length of the analysis window.